Heart of my Soul
by OnyxIvyStone
Summary: Sometimes when you win, you lose.
1. Alma Muda

_**I do not own Inuyasha. Not mine. Never will be.**_

**Alma Muda**

(From the "Domino" soundtrack, written by Heitor Pereira)

_Open the door of your dark cell_

_And let me silence your screams with kisses_

_Open the door of your prison of pain_

_And cover yourself in my arms, my love_

_Open the door, I beg you_

_Open the door to your silent soul_

The ground was soggy with deep red pools of warmth. It soaked through the leather of her boots and up into the fabric of her pants. Her blouse was a wash of slowly drying crimson and her hair was caked with mud made of blood, ash and earth, as was the whole back of her clothing. She was on her knees, holding the glowing pink crystal orb in her hands, staring with dull azure eyes at its purity. The Shikon no Tama. It was complete. Naraku was dead. His black blood was slowly mixing with the red of her friends, her beloveds, her allies and she was left there utterly alone.

She looked around herself at the broken bodies that surrounded her. In the end, it had been her power that had defeated the dark hanyou. Inuyasha and Sesshomaru had given her an opening when the power of their father's swords had fused and given her the opening she had needed. She'd rushed forward, knowing full well she was sacrificing her life to cross into the deadly cloud of Naraku's miasma, but she did not falter. She reached out into the fissure created by the brother's combined strength and had grasped the Shikon no Tama. She'd purified it while it was still within Naraku. In one last, desperate act, he dispelled his power, engulfing a square mile with malevolent energy that tore everyone to pieces, killing them.

She'd been spared because the Shikon no Tama had protected her. It had chosen her as its eternal protector. As long as she lived, the jewel would be her responsibility and the jewel intended for her to live for eternity. She stood slowly and looked to the two brothers. Inuyasha was shredded beyond recognition. She walked to his side and found the sword, Tessaiga, half submerged in a pool of his blood. She pulled it from the crimson bog and sheathed it carefully, with reverence. Next she walked to Sesshomaru, the great Taiyoukai who she had become friends with over the last few years. Rin had been murdered by one of Naraku's incarnations. The Taiyoukai had nearly lost his mind in grief. Kagome had been there for him. She'd helped him hunt down the incarnation and then promised him she would help him gain his revenge.

She knelt beside the broken body of the once so beautiful inuyoukai. She pushed his bloody, matted bangs away from the crescent moon still present on his brow and leaned down gently to kiss it. Inuyasha had wanted death. He'd decided he wished to return to Kikyo even though, once the undead miko had died, the fracture of Kagome's soul used to resurrect her had returned and fused with her. She remembered everything that had happened to Kikyo. She had all of her emotions. All of her memories. Still, Inuyasha could not accept that she had not died so much as been returned to her present life and so had decided that, no matter the result of the battle with Naraku, he would die in the end. They had said their goodbyes. She had not been given the chance to say goodbye to Sesshomaru.

_"What will you do when Naraku is defeated, Miko?" His voice was soft and laden with the dull ache he still felt in the absence of Rin. Kagome's company had become his only sanity since the little girl had been murdered. She hadn't left his side, even when he'd threatened to kill her._

_She shrugged lightly. "Once I thought I would stay here with Inuyasha and my friends… Then Miroku succumb to the curse placed on his family by Naraku. Sango went into hiding because she was pregnant only to lose the child and her life… Shippo… Sweet Shippo. When Naraku destroyed Kaede's village, he tried to be strong for them. To protect them, but he wasn't strong enough. Inuyasha and I had been away seeking out Naraku and when we returned, everyone was dead. Now Inuyasha says he doesn't want to live any more because Kikyo is dead. I don't know if I really have a reason to stay in this time any more."_

_"What about the mangy wolf?"_

_She smiled faintly and laughed bitterly. "Kouga, no. He's more a reason to run away than stay. He's always loved me, but I can't see him as anything more than a friend. If I stayed, I'd hurt him and I couldn't bear that."_

_"What about… What about this Sesshomaru?" He asked in an almost whispered tone._

_She turned her head and met his fierce amber eyes with her shimmering azure ones. "If I went back to my time, I'd be like a ghost there. If I stayed here, with you, wouldn't it undermined your rule in the West?"_

_"Only if I let it do so. This Sesshomaru… Enjoys your company, Miko. You have made the loss of Rin bearable."_

She smiled and nodded faintly, turning her gaze back to the stars. "Then I will stay."

"Why will I stay now, Sesshomaru?" She whispered softly against the smooth skin of his brow.

She sighed and trembled, then moved to grasp the hilt of Tesseiga. She found his hand would not release the blade. She frowned and tried to pry his fingers away from the finely woven leather and metal only to be nearly scared to death when he gripped it more firmly.

"You're… You're alive." She breathed and looked over the rest of his body. He was barely breathing. It was so shallow, in fact, that she'd completely missed it. His heart wasn't beating which caused her to pause. She waited a moment and then heard and felt the strong thrum in his chest. His body had slowed down in order to ensure his survival even while so terribly injured.

She felt tears well in her eyes and, though she could not see it herself, some of the light that had faded away returned to her gaze. "Hold on, Sesshomaru. Please…"

She closed her eyes and held the jewel tightly in her palm. If she tried to heal him with her powers alone, she would purify him, but through the Shikon no Tama, she could channel her energies through the youkai energies that were present and warring within it and alter her own power enough that she could heal him without harming him. "Please… Please…" She whispered. A sudden, agonizing jolt of energy pierced through her whole body as she focused and tried to heal the Taiyoukai before her.

After a moment of agony, Sesshomaru's eyes flashed open, bleeding red. He growled and snarled shortly before he caught sight of the miko who wept beside him, fighting to save his life. She was so focused and caught in a halo of white. He forced his beast back into the recesses of his mind and allowed himself to be healed. Agony turned into white, intense, blinding pain as he felt the bone and flesh of his missing arm begin to knit and regenerate. As his hand and fingers were returned to him, he flexed them and felt, for the first time, flesh where the phantom limb had been for so many years.

She felt weak. Her heart skipped a beat and suddenly she was simply, utterly exhausted. She began to collapse, but found arms wrapped securely around her. A soft cry escaped through her parted lips and a few tears slipped down her cheeks. She felt herself lifted up and held close to a strong armored chest. She felt wind blowing around her. She felt the warmth of the body that held her so close. She felt his breath against her brow where he placed his lips in a gentle kiss. And then the world went black.

He entered his palace in a rush of the scent of blood and ash. He did not let anyone near the girl he held so fast against his chest. She was breathing shallowly and was deathly pale. The scent of blood overwhelmed her normally pleasing scent and it bothered him greatly. He snarled at his servants and walked directly to the hot springs that were settled in the bathhouse that was in his private courtyard.

He laid her on one of the benches and undressed her swiftly. He did so without focusing on any part of her for any length of time. He knew of her modesty and, though when he first met her he thought her indecent, he had learned in time that she was, in fact, innocent and worthy of the respect that came with her maidenhood.

He disrobed as well and carried her into the heated waters of the hot springs, bathing them both with infinite care. Not only had she salvaged his sanity after the death of his ward, now she had saved his life. She was worthy of all the care he could show her. He trusted no one else to do so, especially not in his palace. All within the walls were youkai, who either wished to usurp him, harm him or hated humans so greatly that he would not trust them with Kagome's life. It was why he stayed away so much of the time. It was why Rin had never set foot in his palace. This was different. Kagome needed care in a place where she could recover and not fear anyone coming after the Shikon no Tama she held so tightly in her fist.

Once she was clean, he stood and carried her from the spring to his chambers. He dressed her in one of his lighter haori he usually wore for sleep. She was nearly swimming in the fabric. It fell down to her knees, but he mused that, much of that first span of time while they had been enemies, she had dressed in skirts far shorter. He worked out the tangles in her long hair with his finely carved comb, taking his time so every ebony strand fell neatly down her back. Shortly after he had laid her down and had dressed in a similar haori and hakama, he heard her whimper softly as she fought to wake. He knelt beside her and caressed his fingertips along her jaw gently.

"Kagome…" He whispered and was rewarded with her azure eyes fluttering open and meeting his amber gaze. "You are safe. You are in my home."

Her eyes welled with tears and she nodded slowly. He caressed her shoulders and arms gently, causing her to startle. She took his newly regenerated hand and looked at it in wonder. "I did this…"

He nodded and smiled faintly. It was a gentle smile. A kind smile. The smile that, up until then, only Rin had ever seen. "You gave me back what carelessness lost me."

She smiled and nodded, though her tears continued. He reached out and rubbed them away with the pads of his thumbs. "He's dead… They're all dead except for us. Sesshomaru, I feel so lost."

"You are not lost. You are safe with me. I will let no one harm you." He drew her into his embrace and held her close, smoothing her hair comfortingly.

She curled against him and held tightly to his frame. She closed her eyes and breathed in his clean, masculine scent. "No one could. The Shikon no Tama won't let me die. I should have, but it has chosen me to be its protector for eternity. I have the feeling that, if someone tried to kill me, no matter how damaged I was, I would survive."

"How can you be certain?"

"Because I should have died in the fight with Naraku. I sustained as much damage, if not more than you and Inuyasha did. I felt every blow. If any one should have died in that battle, it should have been me, but I'm still here."

He nodded and held her tighter. "This court is not a safe place, Kagome. If you stay with me here, you must be strong. Your life will be in danger every day."

"That's why you wandered with Rin?"

"Yes. I will wander with you if you so wish."

"No… I… I don't want to wander any more. At least not for a while." She looked up and met his gaze. "Please, Sesshomaru, trust me. I'm stronger than you give me credit for."

"I give you credit for your strength, Kagome. It is only that this Sesshomaru should be your protector. You should not have to fear in my house, but… The only safety you could ever truly know here would be as my mate and… I know you loved my brother. I know we are only allies and comrades…"

"We're much more than that." She chided, silencing him with her gaze. "Sesshomaru, you're my friend. You're more than my friend, you're… You're the only person who understands. You're the only person who doesn't make me feel second best or like a ghost wandering without purpose. Don't you see? I loved Inuyasha, but he never loved me back… You do."

He blinked, then nodded. What point was there in lying or denying the truth she'd deduced? "You love this Sesshomaru?"

She blushed faintly and traced his features with her fingertips. "Maybe this is the way it was meant to be. Two broken souls that fit together in a way that mends the fissures and shards they lost. I don't know what might happen tomorrow, Sesshomaru, but I know that, as I walked beside you, fought beside you, I learned how closely our souls match… You became my home, and I love you for that."

He smiled again, but faint amusement danced in his eyes where sorrow had been only moments before. Sorrow and mourning. "So many words."

She laughed with sudden mirth and then found her lips captured by his. She trembled and returned his kiss deeply and with the desperation that came with loss. She tasted the same desperation in him as their tongues danced together and she knew that, no matter what happened in the morning, this night was theirs and no one could steal it from them.

He laid her back again and pressed her into the mattress. His overwhelming need weakened any resolve he might have had regarding the miko's purity and his own pride. His actions would weaken his hold on the West as his father's had centuries before. Sesshomaru had fought the stigma his father's decisions had cast over his own reign and now, mating Kagome, risking her pregnancy would certainly destroy what respect he had left in the youkai court. But he didn't care any more. He'd lost so much. He ached so completely and he knew she understood. And he understood her pain. All that mattered was ebbing the ache they shared. All that mattered was filling the great expansive void that was threatening their existence.

He couldn't remember undressing her, or her undressing him, but as the fabric slipped from him onto the bedding, he realized that any thought was futile. Fighting their need was futile. And so, the great Taiyoukai of the West succumb to the supple, beautiful miko whose kisses danced along his jaw and hands gripped gently to his back.

She didn't remember the first pain. She had been told that it would come with her first time, but she didn't experience it. She was too lost in his presence and the comfort it brought her. Their bodies entwined and merged, becoming one in a slow, languid, but all together desperate act. Pleasure was secondary to their closeness, their union. Exhaustion was ignored and fought time and again. She needed him as desperately as he needed her and so, it was only with the gradual light of morning that they found themselves so utterly spent that continuing seemed a flight of fancy.

He curled around her and clutched her tightly to his form in much the same way she clung to him. Their legs even held fast to each other as afterglow hung in heavy veils around them. Between them, bittersweet kisses continued to connect lightly, slowly as their tears mingled together. Her heart felt broken and healed at once. His soul ached and thrived in her hands. It did not matter the trials the day would bring. There was no fear of the future. They had faced more terror than anyone else could enact upon them again. They had lost more than any one person should have to in a full lifetime. It did not matter what would come. It did not matter what they had endured. What mattered was the moment. What mattered was the throbbing pain living simultaneously with pleasure and comfort. Nothing would ever heal, but together they could endure.


	2. Tell me

**Because I love my readers, here are a few more editions to my one shot. There will be as much story as there is song to write it around.**

**Peace.**

**Ivy**

_**I do not own Inuyasha. Not mine. Never will be. Sadly.**_

(From _Eric's Song_ by Vienna Teng)

_strange how you know inside me_

_I measure the time and I stand amazed_

_strange how I know inside you_

_my hand is outstretched toward the damp of the haze_

_and of course I forgive_

_I've seen how you live_

_like a phoenix you rise from the ashes_

_you pick up the pieces_

_and the ghosts in the attic_

_they never quite leave_

_and of course I forgive_

_you've seen how I live_

_I've got darkness and fears to appease_

_my voices and analogies_

_ambitions like ribbons_

_worn bright on my sleeve_

_strange how we know each other_

He had bent to her will because he loved her. He had ordered his soldiers to return to the battlefield where Naraku had fallen along with Inuyasha and bring back his brother's remains the next morning after he had returned with Kagome. He had intended to have the hanyou cremated and his ashes buried silently near their father's, however, he could not say no to her. Not with her beautiful sapphire blue eyes lifted up with him, brimming with unshed tears that caused them to sparkle even more.

She wanted him to be cremated with full honors as the son of a Taiyoukai. She wanted a stone shrine placed over his ashes. She wanted his sword to be buried with him. Had he not loved her, wanted her, needed her so fully, he would have scoffed at her desires for the foolish bastard. But he did love her. Deeply. And he could not say no.

She was kneeling before the simple yet elegant stone shrine, burning incense and praying silently. He stood several feet away with his eyes transfixed on her form. She had been crying all morning and so her eyes were red and puffy. Her face was pale and tear stained. He had not tried to console her. He understood the kind of tears she was shedding. They were tears of ultimate loss. Only a few days before, Inuyasha had been cremated and buried with his father's sword. The next day, in an attempt to find consolation and hope, she had attempted to travel through the Bone Eater's well. The magic had ended and dispersed when the jewel chose Kagome as its protector. She was trapped, separated from her family.

Slowly she stood and met his eyes with her lower lip trembling. He opened his arms and caught her up tightly into his embrace. He kissed the crown of her head and felt her arms tighten around him. She had not left his side since they had defeated Naraku. It was not a desperate clinging on either of their parts. It was simply natural as breathing for them to desire closeness to one another.

"Tell me." She whispered as she turned her face so her cheek could rest against the solid muscles of his chest.

He smiled faintly and caressed her face with one hand while he held her flush to his form with his other. She trembled lightly and kissed his fingertips as they reached her lips. "I love you." He breathed and ran his fingers through her hair when her hold tightened around his torso.

She smiled and closed her eyes. "I love you too." He had explained to her that the words she ached to hear from him were not safe in most situations in court or in his palace. Only when they both knew they were completely alone could they be voiced, and then, only when they asked each other for them. It would have seemed silly had their union not meant weakness for Sesshomaru. Youkai did not mate for love. They mated for power. They mated to produce heirs. Most female youkai were slaves to their centennial cycles of fertility during which they had to mate or faced pain and anguish for the duration of their ability to conceive. Male youkai often took human females for pleasure as consorts while they waited for their youkai mates to near fertility and desire for relations. Inu no Taisho had taken Inuyasha's mother for such a purpose, however, unlike most youkai concerning their human consorts, Inu no Taisho fell in love and took the mortal woman as his most treasured over Satori, the mother of his heir and mate.

Sesshomaru, by youkai standards, was still young to be considering a mate. He had another century before the court would demand an heir from him. He had that time to find a way out of such a decree so that he would not have to betray Kagome. He was faithful to her as any dog was to its master. Though he did not think of their relationship in such crass terms, he did know that their loyalty to each other was strong. Strong enough to last eternity if they took care with each other's hearts and trust. He wanted a child with her someday. He knew she wanted one as dearly with him. At the current moment, he knew his every move was being watched as well as Kagome's. Every word said within ear shot, every touch or look was being judged. In private or away from prying eyes, he took great pleasure in comforting her and savoring their closeness. Within the gaze of the court, he found himself forced to play a role as was she. He, the icy Taiyoukai of the Western lands, heir to Inu no Taisho who had sullied his blood with a mortal woman he put higher than his own mate, son of Satori, deadly assassin and warrior from the continent to the West, named the killing perfection in honor of his destiny and she, the cool, composed miko of the Shikon no Tama, timeless, beautiful, dangerous and aloof who had readily given up her place in humanity to stand loyal beside a youkai who had once attempted to claim her life and the bastard brother she had stood with.

That, in its self, caused murmurs in the court and curious glances. She stood close to him, wore his colors and yielded only to his voice. In turn, when his eyes fell on her, the ice melted momentarily and he took her word and opinion above the council that had advised both him and his father before him. The honors he showed to his half brother had only cemented the belief in the court that the Taiyoukai had softened with love for the human miko girl. All of this both Kagome and Sesshomaru knew. Jaken, while a pest when traveling along side himself and Rin, had become Sesshomaru's greatest tool in the court as he had been before the Taiyoukai had begun his wanderings with Rin in search of Naraku. The annoying little green toad had a way of listening in to conversations, forging alliances and planting false information in the court. It was a skill that, while immensely useful in the palace, proved to be ineffectual in the wilds of Japan. And for all his pompous posturing, the greatest desire in Jaken's heart was for his Lord, Sesshomaru, and son of his former Lord, Inu no Taisho, to find happiness, strength and be worthy of his position. As much as he hated Kagome, Jaken could see how the slender, small miko had changed Sesshomaru for the better. She brought him happiness, gave him strength and allowed him to realize his own worth. The toad could not argue with her presence and, instead, had devoted himself to ensuring her lasting presence.

After several long moments of holding her, he pulled away enough to kiss her tenderly. "We should return to the palace." The words resonated with the knowledge they both carried. A few prying youkai were on the cusp of their perception and would soon be in range of sight and hearing.

"Tell me once more… Just once more." She whispered and looked up at him, tracing the markings on his face.

He smiled faintly and mouthed the words as the youkai approached and entered hearing range. "I love you." Then he pulled from her and turned toward the palace. When he heard her foot falls behind him, he found himself at peace again and ready to face the silent hostility of the courtiers.

Kagome followed him with a faint smile kissing her lips. She stared at the broad, beautiful lines of his back and shoulders. In his palace, he wore no armor and left his swords on the wall in their room. He had allowed her to braid his hair every morning after a rather odd conversation concerning his fascination with grooming her. More specifically with brushing her hair until it shone like silk every evening and morning. She had given up on the layers in her hair and her bangs a year previous and had allowed it all to grow out as it wished to. The end result was a curling wave of hair that framed her face in ebony and then a much longer curtain of onyx that hit her hips at its longest length.

She had been combing her hair out after a long afternoon of horseback riding with Sesshomaru, whimpering with every tangle that refused to be unknotted. The Taiyoukai had frowned, watching her for several moments before he stood and snatched his comb away from her. She quirked her brow as he sat behind her on cushion and began anointing each tangle with a soft smelling oil before working out the knot. "Wasn't I doing a good enough job? It is my hair…"

"You were breaking the strands in your haste." He replied simply. "Human hair is too fine to be treated with any lack of care."

"Do you mean my hair is too fine because the strands are thin or too fine because my hair is pretty?" She asked softly as she watched him in the mirror.

"Yes." Was his reply as he continued. His lips curled in a faint smile. "Youkai hair is not course, but its density and strength allows for less damage when grooming. Human hair is weaker no matter how thick each strand and so, when you force my comb through your hair, you break it." He swept some of her hair from her shoulder and kissed the skin that was revealed from her loosely tied kimono made of the same fabric, pattern and color his clothing was. "Also, the black is too beautiful to be damaged by carelessness. It shouldn't be cut or harmed. Neither should its owner."

She laughed and leaned gently into his lips. "Then perhaps you should take up caring for it."

He chuckled and ran his fingers through a section he had finished combing out. She trembled lightly. "Would you let me?"

"We have eternity, so far as we know… You might get tired of the arrangement."

"I doubt it." He murmured and leaned to nip her ear. "Would you let me?"

She blushed and laughed. "Yes. I would."

His grooming of her hair had become a part of their routine before and after court. The simple act calmed them both before and after dealing with the court. Kagome's amusement with braiding his hair had become a part of the routine.

As they approached his gardens and then the palace, they could feel eyes falling on them. Sesshomaru felt his stomach tense upon the realization that someone unexpected had arrived. He snarled faintly and paused at the door of his study. Kagome frowned and looked up at him in question. He looked down to her and smiled faintly. "Remember that you are allied to me and that I will let nothing befall you ever."

"What is wrong?"

"An unannounced and uninvited visitor, my Kagome. Do not allow her to shake you."

Her frown deepened, causing him to sigh. "I trust you." She whispered and followed him once he had opened the door to enter.

Sitting at his desk was a female inuyoukai with eyes, markings and features eerily similar to Sesshomaru. She smiled a fairly wicked smile and tilted her head. "Close the door, son, this conversation needs to be heard by the three sets already present."

Sesshomaru scowled and closed the door. He felt a sealing spell surrounding the room, effectively shielding their conversation from prying ears. "What do you want, Satori?" There was venom in his voice and a coldness that she had only heard reserved for Inuyasha.

Satori sighed and shook her head. "Am I not still your mother? Did I not birth you?"

"You fulfilled your purpose in that regard. You did little else but cause me grief since."

"Sesshomaru…" She breathed, frowning deeply. He always refused to speak of his mother. She knew that the woman was alive, but she had not known much else.

"Don't fret little girl. He speaks to me like this all the time. You see, aside from the first few months of his life, the Taiyoukai you stand beside has seen very little of me. I have engaged only in the vaguest attempts to endorse his education and upbringing. Inu no Taisho chose me for my blood and power. Very little else. He knew I did not wish to mother a pup and so, once he was weaned, I abandoned Sesshomaru to his father's care. The insolent child hasn't forgiven me since." Satori smirked and stood, advancing on Kagome. "You see, while Inu no Taisho had wanted an heir, it was only to silence the voices of his council. He had no interest in youkai. His attentions were always upon humans. First as their friend. Then as their protector. Finally as lover to one who caused his early death. So tell me, Kagome. Are you going to be the cause of my son's early death as Izayoi was for my mate?"

"You have no right to do this." His voice was heavy with rage. "This is not your court. This has never been your court. Leave and let us alone."

She looked up to her son and raised a beautifully arched brow. "Sesshomaru, allow me this one moment of motherly inquisition in the name of my son. You see, while I never wanted you, nor did your father, honestly, it seems you have found someone who does. I simply wish to see how far her desire goes. How far her loyalty goes. For, if the blood your father and I gave you is to be diluted, it is only right that hers be worthy of its mixing."

"You don't even know if that is our intent." She said softly and smiled faintly when the woman's amber eyes fell on her incredulously. "Frankly, you only know what the court has whispered. The reason you're here is to see how much truth there is to the rumors."

"Oh… But I don't need to know much to have them confirmed in my mind. You see, when the lovely Sesshomaru was barely old enough to hold a sword level, he swore to his father that if he ever was so weak as to bend the way Inu no Taisho had to love or the court council, it would be faithfully and without question. In other words, when he took a mate, it would be only that one beloved and no other could take her place. Though he often sated his carnal needs as most male youkai do and always have, you must understand, Kagome, that he has never kept one in his bed. Never in his chambers. Certainly never for several nights in sequence nor allowed her so close to him day after day. Even your hair smells of the oils he uses on his own." She reached out to take a lock of ebony silk in her fingers but found her hand caught short.

"Don't touch her." The words came through gritted teeth. He had endured enough and would not allow her to go any further.

Satori raised her eyes to her son and smiled wickedly. "So protective. So very protective, Sesshomaru. Is she already heavy with your child or do you simply love her so much you cannot keep yourself in check?"

"Enough." He gripped her wrist and then broke it, forcing her to her knees. She didn't even cry out. She laughed.

"Priceless. You really do love her. You love her so deeply you are making yourself careless."

"Why did you come?"

"Because I had to know. I had to see with my own eyes what had become of my son after the death of his precious ward. And now I see… I see what you've become. You are like your father."

He snarled. "You really want to die."

"Sesshomaru…" Her hand touched his wrist and he felt himself calm. His amber eyes met her azure blue and he sighed. "Let her speak."

Satori smiled faintly and held her wrist once her son released her so that she could heal. "I always envied your father. I named you against his will. I wanted you to be like me. I wanted you to live for the kill as I always have and find more joy in shedding blood than mixing it. But part of me knew you would find his strength in time. The strength I always wanted but could never find. It came from his love and desire to have love. It came from the joy and treasure he found in humanity. It isn't weakness, Sesshomaru. She isn't weakness. Do not hide her."

"The council and the court…"

"Don't matter, son." She met his gaze meaningfully. "You will protect her. She will protect herself and you. And I… I will protect you both."

He frowned and leaned gently when Kagome slipped her arm around his waist. He wrapped his arm around her and kissed her brow as he processed his mother's words. "Why?"

"Perhaps… Perhaps I feel indebted to your father still for all the kindnesses he showed me over the centuries. Perhaps I know guilt from abandoning you and never being the mother you needed. Or, perhaps, just perhaps, I want to watch the council who so greedily strove for power at the cost of their own Taiyoukai's life falter and fail. I am rather vindictive, you know."

Sesshomaru smirked and watched as Satori stood. He nodded his head faintly. "You realize if you betray me I will kill you."

"If you didn't, you wouldn't be my son." She walked to the door, then paused and met Kagome's eyes. "They smell your power the same way I do. The jewel you carry frightens them. Never doubt your strength, little miko. You could make whole nations bow at your feet with the ease that you calm your mate."

She blushed faintly as the inuyoukai left the room. The spell remained, providing them temporary privacy. She looked up and met her beloved's confused eyes. "Tell me…" She whispered and smiled as the corners of his mouth threatened to curl.

"You hunger for those words, don't you?" He murmured as he slipped his hands to her hips gently.

She smiled, blushing deeply. "Tell me…"

He backed her gently to his desk, sitting her onto its surface. He nipped her lips teasingly, feeling her tremble. "You know."

"Tell me…" She whispered, arching her throat and gasping as he nipped sharply along her neck and collarbone.

"Why when you know?" He asked as his hands reached down to push the silk of her kimono up to her hips, pressing himself between her thighs, again nipping her lips.

"Because the words are important." She whispered, shuddering. Her hands reached and loosened the ties of his hakama. "Tell me…"

"Why are they important?" He murmured, ready to her touch as she freed him. He gripped her mid back with both hands as he thrust surely into her, issuing a sharp cry from her crimson lips.

"Be-cause…" She gasped, clutching his shoulders as he began a slow, strong rhythm within her. She met his eyes with a loving, fiery look. "They mean… You are mine… Tell me…" She cried out, shaking softly as his hands gripped tighter at her back.

He chuckled and captured her lips, groaning softly as her embrace tightened. He broke the kiss enough to speak. His lips brushed hers teasingly when he spoke. "I love you."

"I love you…" She breathed, capturing his lips again in a heated kiss. She felt their auras flare together dangerously. Their powers were so opposed she often wondered if she could conceive a child with him. Her question was answered abruptly as their power flared again against each other. As soon as their climax was certain and speeding toward fertility, her purification powers flared and ended any chance that might have been in that moment.

He clung to her tightly as they spiraled down from climax and afterglow. He petted her hair and kissed her brow as she wept. "We will try again and again… We have eternity."

"But… We want this… Why would Kami let us live and give us this chance and each other if… If we can't have all of the dream?" She whispered, pressing her face into the silk of his clothing, letting her tears wet through to his chest.

"I don't know." He murmured and scowled as he felt the spell wane. "But would it be so horrible if it were only us? I know… I know that we want to have children, but… Kagome, we could find others like Rin and Shippo. We could make a family if none could be conceived. We could even if we find a way… Please don't mourn this. We are not alone." He gently took her chin and met her beautiful sapphire pools. He always felt like he could see the secrets of the divine in her eyes. "I love you." He whispered and kissed her tenderly when she gasped. He'd said the words without her asking. Said them because he wanted to. Because he meant them and wanted her to hear them. "Never doubt that."

"Never." She murmured and curled into his arms again with her eyes closed. She wasn't afraid, but she wondered in the back of the mind the question spun unabatingly. Would they ever find a way to stop mourning?


	3. Serendipity

_**I do not own Inuyasha. Not mine. Never will be. Unfortunately.**_

(Vienna Teng's _Eric's Song_)

_strange how I fit into you_

_there's a distance erased with the greatest of ease_

_strange how you fit into me_

_a gentle warmth filling the deepest of needs_

_and with each passing day_

_the stories we say_

_draw us tighter into our addiction_

_confirm our conviction_

_that some kind of miracle_

_passed on our heads_

_and how I am sure_

_like never before_

_of my reasons for defying reason_

_embracing the seasons_

_we dance through the colors_

_both followed and led_

_strange how we fit each other_

The gardens had changed immeasurably in two hundred and fifty years. She sat quietly on a cushion near the door leaning her head on the jam as she watched her beloved sparing with their son. The boy had long black hair and chocolate eyes. He was nearing twenty years old and, over the past fifteen years that they had sheltered him, he had overcome the nightmares that had plagued him. Sesshomaru had found him, the only survivor of a human raid on a human village during another pointless conflict between rulers, and brought him home to Kagome.

It had been the same story for them that replayed every few decades. The boy was alone as every child they had raised had been alone. They needed them and so they were sheltered. The youkai population, with the exception of the few children that Sesshomaru and Kagome saved, had become victims of their own foolishness and lack of care. Humans, as they mastered the power of black powder, had discovered ways to kill youkai and steal their land and power. Sesshomaru had been spared along with their adoptive youkai children because of Kagome's knowledge of history and the uncanny ability she possessed to hide her family's preternatural features with her powers. Sesshomaru had also bartered much of his land and power for relative seclusion from those who would take his birthright and life.

Their first adopted human daughter, a girl they named Miya, had ensured a mask for her parents in the form of a family line who effectively ruled the lands that were actually the possession of the immortal Taiyoukai. She had passed into the next life over a century before, however her children, like all of their mortal children and descendants, remained close to Sesshomaru and Kagome with a kind of devotion only love can forge. With the help of their mortal family, Sesshomaru and Kagome had managed to create a sanctuary for their youkai family and any other youkai who needed a safe haven from the encroaching power of the humans.

It had not began as such an easy compromise, she remembered. Her mind slipped back to the evening her beloved had decided to name her as his mate. The council and court had obliged his relationship with the human miko. After a century of her being his acknowledged consort and raising several children together, they were forced to by virtue of the fact that the great Western Taiyoukai had done nothing that would be considered against the youkai court's law and social order. The human children were tolerated more because they were protected by Satori. Kagome felt her lips curl as she recalled the day that Miya had been brought into the court. She had been so small and fragile. Barely able to walk. Completely innocent and yet taken from such anguish and pain. Her family had been murdered in a youkai attack which Sesshomaru had stumbled upon just in time to save the tiny girl, toddling toward her birth mother's broken and cooling corpse.

The council had looked upon Kagome where she held Miya with dangerous and threatening glares.

"What makes you think we will stand for this palace to be sullied further by mortal, human blood, Sesshomaru? To appease your consort you have committed an act which is a slap in the face of this council and your court." His name was Ryu. He was a serpent youkai and currently the leader of the council. As much as he was hated, everyone with the exception of Kagome, Sesshomaru and Satori respected him.

"You have no right to question who I bring into my home. The girl will not be an heir to me. She is here only to bring my consort joy that we may not find together."

"Praise Kami for that." Ryu snarled and smiled as he saw the hurt in Kagome's eyes and the rage building even further in Sesshomaru. If he could goad the icy Taiyoukai into breaking and attacking him, he might make a lesson out of the act and have reason to usurp Sesshomaru's power.

"Ryu, you have been out of line in this council for far too long. I refuse to sit and watch you make my son out to be weak when we all know taking such a child into his court is more a sign of strength." Satori said icily from her place beside Kagome. Her hand rested comfortingly on the woman's shoulder, but it was also a show of her position in the whole matter. "Or is it you question his decision that he need not ask your permission? He is not a pup any longer who needs a council judging his every movement and decision. Your place is only to provide information and advice in time of war and strife. That you would call him here with his consort and the child they have decided to raise together speaks more to your own weaknesses rather than his. Are you honestly so insecure?"

"Next his consort will deign to speak to us! He is weak if he lets them fight his battles." Ryu said haughtily, attempting to hide the waver in his voice. Sesshomaru was terrifying but Satori… The woman had no scruples or fear. At least Sesshomaru feared the loss of the child and his consort.

"Enough." His voice was icy and calm. The tones were barely above a whisper, forcing the council to silence in order to hear him. He stood and approached Ryu. His eyes did not flinch their piercing gaze into the serpent youkai's countenance. He stopped only a few feet away from him and smiled. The room stilled its breath. "Ryu, you have only two options open to you. Either you silence your words and protests along with the rest of the council, leave my sight and resign your obligations to me as my advisors or you continue this tirade. If you do the first, I promise your deaths will be with honor. You will see them coming. You will have the ability to say goodbye to your beloveds. All your families will remain intact and unharmed. However, if you choose to continue and later I must console my consort further than I will once you are gone otherwise, I will order Satori to kill you all slowly in the night. You will not see your end coming. You will die without honor. Your families will follow you and I will take everything you have and give it to the child Kagome and I have claimed to raise as our own. That is your choice, Ryu. You choose for the council. Make your choice wisely."

Ryu choked and took a step back. "You would not kill your advisors! Not even your father would have dared. He knew we were his greatest strength! We gave him what he needed to rule."

"I am stronger than my father, Ryu. He bent to your wills in every respect except when he decided to call Izayoi his mate and love. Even then he tried to appease you in order to keep that one happiness he knew. It was the end of him. You will not be the end of me. Kagome is my consort. Miya is my daughter. If Kami be willing, one day Kagome will give me my heir and she may be called my mate properly. I know what I want and I know what I will have and I know without any doubt that I do not need you to succeed. Make your choice, Ryu, or I will make it for you."

The council had bowed to him. From Kagome's vantage she knew that both Satori and Sesshomaru would have rather they not chosen an honorable death. However, it was that decision which had enabled Sesshomaru to hold Kagome as his mate and Miya, along with every other mortal child they raised, as his family and closest to his blood Kami was willing to give him presently.

Kagome smiled as Sesshomaru disarmed their son. The boy chuckled with his father as an arm was wrapped around his shoulder.

"Well done. In time you might best me, Akira."

Akira chuckled and nodded. "If I had a few more centuries, perhaps. I can only hope for a fraction of your prowess, Father."

"Still you could defeat any mortal man on the battle field. You are a great warrior, do not doubt yourself." The Taiyoukai smiled and then looked up to his mate, finding his smile deepen so that his eyes shimmered in pride.

Akira smiled knowingly and patted his father's arm. "I am going to find my sisters. No doubt they are flirting with the guards again."

"Yes, protect their virtue from themselves, Son." Sesshomaru replied and looked to his son as he retrieved his sword and sheathed it. He turned his gaze back onto his mate once their son had left and approached her slowly, allowing his eyes to drink her whole form in before capturing her deep azure gaze.

He sat beside her with the doorframe between them. He caressed her face and smiled as she leaned into his touch. He leaned and kissed her deeply, drawing her into his arms and then into his lap. She sighed and trembled, clutching as close to him as she was able. His hand moved to slowly from her side to rest at the heavy swell in her abdomen, feeling his child kick from within her. He smiled and slowly pulled his lips from hers so he could meet her eyes again. "How are my mate and heir?"

"We are well." She breathed and curled against him, covering his hand at her belly with one of her own. "She is eager to meet you."

He chuckled and leaned to kiss her abdomen softly, then held her tightly against him. "You are so beautiful. I thought I had won the greatest treasure when it was only you, but to see you so radiant as you carry our daughter… I believe I will have to ensure you are heavy with child rather quickly once she is born."

Kagome laughed and caressed his jaw tenderly, meeting his eyes. Their amber was so perfect and warm in the sunlight. She felt as if she were some unassuming insect that had been embraced by his eternity. A butterfly welcoming her golden prison, never wishing to escape. "Kami willing, I'll give you as many children as I am able."

His eyes danced with a kind of happiness she'd ached to given him for centuries. He rested his palm over her chest, between her breasts. Deep within her flesh rested the Shikon no Tama. It had been a happy accident, their child. The jewel had been placed within her less than a year before for the sake of her own safety.

Her name was Hitomi. She was a kitsune of considerable power and had begged sanctuary in Sesshomaru's home. She had befriended Kagome and the two, after a short time, had become confidants.

"So you were the Kagome of legend? The guardian of the Shikon no Tama?" The woman's green eyes widened in disbelief. She was so like Shippo in her expression and features. She disarmed Kagome without having to try.

"I was and am." Kagome responded softly, her hand resting on the jewel that she had pulled from the silk of her kimono to show the kitsune. "It is mine to protect."

"So you have the power to help save all youkai…"

"Hitomi, it isn't that simple. I know that youkai are in danger, but as the keeper of the jewel, I cannot intervene in history or what is to come. My place is beside Sesshomaru."

"You protect him, though."

"I love him, and yes, I do. I protect everyone who lives within our sanctuary. But I cannot and will not influence the human world. I have walked away from that path and place. I am as separate from them as I am from youkai." She replied, not enjoying where their conversation was headed. Once, years before, she'd had a similar one with Satori. Her beloved's mother had understood and not pressed the issue. She still remained their closest and greatest ally and friend, however she was not so certain about Hitomi even though the two were confidants. "There are many things you do not understand and I cannot explain to you."

Hitomi's face began to change. Its placid friendliness morphed into something that frightened Kagome. "You are a coward." She thrust her hand out and grabbed the Shikon no Tama, ripping it off of Kagome's chest from its chain. "You don't deserve this."

Kagome cried out, feeling as if a portion of her self had been torn away. Her eyes widened as she felt the jewel begin to taint. She hadn't been ready. She hadn't been prepared. She hadn't anticipated well enough the draw of the jewel or the true motives of the woman she'd thought was her friend. "Hitomi, don't! You don't know what you're doing or what that really is! Give it back to me now!"

"No! You weak, pitiful, pathetic creature! You don't deserve this or the man you call your love. You are too weak to deserve him." She snarled and lashed out, slashing Kagome across her abdomen, leaving the girl bloodied for the first time in centuries.

Sesshomaru had found her nearly dead. He gathered her into his arms, frowning deeply as he yelled for the healers. "Kagome… Love, what happened?" He asked as he tried to rouse her.

Her eyes fluttered open and she whimpered. "Hitomi… Attacked me and took the jewel… Sesshomaru, I feel so weak."

He could smell her mortality and it worried him far more than he would ever allow her to know. Her wounds should have been healing but weren't and her hair… Those treasured ebony tresses were beginning to fade into grey. "Hold on, Love. I will go and bring it back to you." He whispered and then left Kagome to the care of the healers and the protection of his mother.

He raced in the direction of her scent. She was easy enough to follow. She was young and weak and inexperienced no matter how clever or manipulative she might also be. When she was in view, he sped up and tackled her, forcing her lithe form to the ground. He pinned her with one hand by her throat and took the Shikon no Tama with his other, holding it tightly as it throbbed with his beloved's waning life. "You will die." He snarled, tightening his grip at her throat.

"She isn't worthy of you! I could be your mate! She can't even give you a child! Sesshomaru, great Taiyouakai, we could take back Japan together! Please…"

"Enough." He didn't have time to parlay with her. Kagome's life was ebbing away and she was infinitely more important. He surged his acid through his palm and severed the kitsune's head from her shoulders in a burst of acrid, burning flesh. He didn't stay even long enough to watch her disintegrate.

He raced back to Kagome's side, finding her slowly fading from her youth to become a grey crone. His heart panged and he moved beside her, pressing the jewel to her chest, between her breasts. The jewel did not react. He snarled and ignored the eyes that were on him. He leaned and pressed his brow to hers, whispering huskily against her lips. "Bring her back, Midoriko, or I swear I will destroy this jewel if only so I may rend your soul. She is mine. She has always been mine and always will be. I will set this world on fire if you let her leave me."

The jewel pulsed and began to sink into the fading miko's chest. She arched weakly and cried out in agony as her age was reversed with the power of the jewel. Her flesh knit. The ebony returned to her long, glossy hair. She shook and he wrapped his arm around her torso as his other hand continued to press where the jewel had merged with her flesh. "Shhh… Breathe, Love. Stay with me." He whispered, feeling wet course from his eyes onto her cheeks. He couldn't lose her. He couldn't imagine eternity alone, without her beside him. His heart could not mend from that loss.

The rending pain that was coursing through her began to ebb away in pulses. She felt a shift in her aura, but it was ignored instead so that her attention could fall on the cool tears of her lover falling on her face. She arched and brushed her lips against his, whimpering in pleasure as he kissed her with fever and need. She wrapped her arms around him weakly and felt him grip where the jewel had slipped into her body, fusing with her entirely. He growled softly and embraced her fully, pinning her gently with his weight.

Satori felt a blush kiss her cheek. She looked to the healers and growled. "We will leave them now." She said, barely raising her voice. The healers nodded and left with Satori close behind. She closed the doors and sealed them, smiling faintly as her mind reeled in understanding.

He tore away her already ruined kimono and kissed along her throat and chest, breathing in the sudden change. Before, always, her fertility had spoken of humanity and her miko power. Something was different now. Vaguely, only enough that he could detect it as her arousal grew, her scent held the promise of fertility and her aura rippled faintly with youkai energy from the jewel fused in her body. His hands roamed along her with fevered need before he too disrobed and captured her gaze. When their eyes met, he knew easily what their pairing would produce and he realized how unaware she was. He kissed her deeply and thrust into her ready embrace, issuing a sigh and moan of delight from his beautiful Kagome. He growled softly with territorial need and proceeded to take her heatedly, ignoring everything aside from his mate and the musical sounds she made into his ears as he sired their first child together.

He had almost lost her. However, had he never come so close to her dying in his arms, the jewel would never have fused with her and the child, their daughter, who grew so easily and with such strength deep in her womb, would never have come to be. He leaned again and kissed her deeply, his hand tracing the curve of the swell where his daughter rested and he smiled when Kagome covered his touch with her own. From within the tiny girl pressed to their united touch and he felt his pride gather once again. He would not take this happiness for granted. Neither would she. After so much mourning, it was time for joy and peace and a single moment of untouched bliss.


	4. To Speak the Words

This really is the end, folks. As I said when I started the extensions to this story, I would continue writing until I ran out of song and this is the final verse. I feel like this story has come full circle. Everything ends up where it is supposed to be. If feels finished now and I take peace in the peace I have been able to give them. I love you guys. I hope you've loved this. Peace.

**Ivy**

_**I do not own Inuyasha. Not mine. Never will be. Unfortunately.**_

(Vienna Teng's _Eric's Song_)

_strange how certain the journey_

_time unfolds the petals for our eyes to see_

_strange how this journey's hurting_

_in ways we accept as part of fate's decree_

_so we just hold on fast_

_acknowledge the past_

_as lessons exquisitely crafted_

_painstakingly drafted_

_to carve us as instruments_

_that play the music of life_

_for we don't realize_

_our faith in the prize_

_unless it's been somehow elusive_

_how swiftly we choose it_

_the sacred simplicity_

_of you at my side_

She knelt at the stone monument and, for the first time since she had watched his ashes and sword placed beneath the earth, Kagome smiled as she reached out her fingertips to caress where his name had been carved into the granite. "Inuyasha." She whispered and felt a few happy tears slip down her cheeks. Nearby she heard the laughter of children and the call of their parents. Her mate was nearby, watching her as she again commemorated his brother's grave with her tears. "I'm happy, Inuyasha. I'm home and I'm happy again. I miss you and Sango and Miroku… And Shippo. Sweet, brave Shippo. And Rin. But we're all together in one-way or another, aren't we? At least for a few moments."

They had moved their friends' and family's remains to rest beside Inuyasha shortly after the council had been honorably discharged and the court had disbanded from Sesshomaru's palace. The little cemetery in the gardens on his lands had grown with each generation of their children that had passed into the next life. She raised her eyes and they fell on the stone marked with the name Akira and she felt herself tremble.

He knelt beside her and wrapped his arms around her, drawing her back against his solid form. He kissed her cheek with a gentle pressure. "He knows, Love. They all know and they rejoice with us. It is time for celebration now. Let's go back to our family."

She nodded and stood with his help. Her fingers entwined with his as they walked. Her abdomen was only beginning to betray the tiny swell where their son was growing. They were quick to learn that her fertility was in step with a normal youkai females ensuring they did not conceive more than once every century. They also learned that their children would be born with human features but full youkai power. Another gift of the jewel. As they approached the small group of their family who sat at tables in the gardens setting up a picnic, Kagome's eyes fell on where their daughter, Rin, named for the daughter Sesshomaru had lost, sat with her mother, Mrs. Higurashi, cradling their grandchild. Kagome smiled and tightened her grip on Sesshomaru's hand. The modern era had been kinder on them than any other time had. The Taiyoukai's tactical knowledge and ruthlessness in battle had easily translated into a business savvy that was not to be trifled with. Coupled with Kagome's knowledge of time's progression, the pair had ensured that they and their large family of adopted and blood family would never need to want for anything.

In simpler ways, with the punk era upon them and gothic looks such as white hair and strangely colored contacts, when Sesshomaru was not in his office working and cloaked by his beloved's power in order to look 'normal,' he could walk in the world without fear of persecution or possible death from the long gone hunters of youkai.

Mrs. Higurashi stood and walked to her daughter, embracing her tightly as she had the day that Kagome knew it was safe to return to her home. The day the well had finally sealed completely. The horrible day that Inuyasha had died and she had almost lost her beloved Sesshomaru.

He had pulled their car up along side the tall staircase that led to the shrine and began to step out to open her door. She'd gripped his hand, stopping him, though her eyes were still gripped by the stairway.

"What is it?" He asked softly, holding her hand gently. Over the centuries he had never found himself bored or upset by his mate. Everything about her, every part of her person complimented him entirely as he did her. They were more than suited for each other. It was as if they had been molded and formed precisely to be one for eternity. Still, to his delight, after five centuries of standing beside her, she still could surprise him.

"I just want to savor this moment a little longer, Love. Centuries ago to the day, almost to the hour, I was waking up in your arms and your bed." She turned her gaze to him and smiled a faint, wicked smile. "You realize this is actually the closest day we have to an anniversary?"

He chuckled and leaned to kiss her deeply. Only a few months before they had taken delight in siring their second child. His desire for her had not ebbed and, to his complete joy, unlike most youkai females, hers had not either for a moment. "Do you think your mother will mind so terribly that we have never wed in such a long while?"

She crinkled her nose, causing him to laugh heartily. "You gave me a ring that I wear. She doesn't need to know that it doesn't mean what she would want it to mean. As far as I am concerned, there's a point when ceremonies lose their meaning… And there isn't one that could compare to the meaning I know from being called your mate."

"I other words, I am to keep my mouth closed regarding the full nature of our union."

"If you like sleeping in bed with me."

"In five hundred years you have never forced me out."

"In five hundred years, you've never given me a reason to." She laughed and kissed him again, squeezing his hand. "Come on. Before I lose my nerve."

He smirked as she slipped from the car before he could reach the door to open it. He raced to meet her on the stairs and gripped her rear, receiving a sharp yelp and his mate falling into his arms as his prize. She clung to him and giggled before he caught her lips and kissed her deeply. She had hidden his markings for this particular meeting. She wasn't certain how her mother would take not only that she'd gotten together with a blood thirsty Taiyoukai and given him a daughter and soon a son coupled with the fact that he looked like he spent too much time in a tattoo parlor. In time she'd let down the illusion. For the moment, first impressions were the most important thing.

"I love you." He whispered and kissed her again, breathing in her scent and the underlying scent of their son. He had gotten used to the smelly, noisy twenty first century. He had enough time to acclimate and the preparation and warning of his mate to help him adjust.

She blushed and returned his kisses with love and need. She knew with complete certainty that, while she had been the reason he'd adapted so easily, that she could never have survived eternity without him. She was a mortal first and his love second. However, he made the long years seem magical and never once did she feel the weariness of her true age. He kept her young. Still, every time he said those words, she felt a jolt through her that was inexpressible. "I love you too." She murmured and held to him a few more moments before she could find the strength to take his hand again and finish walking up the staircase to the shrine.

At the shrine in front of her home, her mother knelt and worked with the spring bulbs. Kagome smiled and walked up toward her. Mrs. Higurashi did not look up, but spoke to the two who had come to the shrine as she worked.

"Please give me a moment. Once I am finished with this bulb, I will show you around."

"There's no hurry." Kagome said softly and noticed how her mother tensed at the sound of her voice. Sesshomaru wrapped an arm around his mate's shoulder, smiling as the woman stood and turned slowly to look on her daughter.

"Kagome?" She asked with disbelief in her eyes. "Baby… I… I felt the well close… How are you here?"

Kagome smiled and approached her mother, embracing her tightly. "Because I didn't come by the well, Momma. I had to wait a long time to come back, but I'm here." She trembled as her mother's arms tightened around her, holding her fast in her embrace. Mrs. Higurashi had always had a sense of things. Of the magic in the world. For a moment, she'd thought that with the closing of the well, she would never see Kagome again. She was glad to be wrong.

Sesshomaru smiled and nodded to Mrs. Higurashi as she looked up and took him in. Slowly she released her daughter and looked her over more closely. Her eyes fell on the ring, and then she smiled with watering eyes. "He has taken care of you?"

She nodded and blushed deeply. "This is Sesshomaru, Momma. We have been together… A very long time."

Mrs. Higurashi laughed. "I have no doubt of that… Am I a grandmother yet?"

Kagome's blush deepened and Sesshomaru approached, caressing his mate's cheek. "We have a daughter named Rin who only recently made us grandparents and she now carries a son to be born in the early fall."

Mrs. Higurashi glowed and hugged her daughter tightly, kissing her cheeks. "I have to meet them. Souta will be so happy to be an uncle and grandpa… Well… We'll make sure he doesn't have a stroke, but he'll be happy too."

Kagome glowed and nodded, feeling Sesshomaru's hand resting on her sounders as her mother turned to gather her gardening tools before leading them inside for food and talking. She felt the tension leave her and knew he felt it as well because his arms encircled her abdomen gently so she could lean into him. "I'm happy…" She whispered. "So very happy."

"You are home." He murmured and kissed her cheek.

"No… I've always been home because I've been with you. Now I just have what I thought I'd lost all those years ago… And still…"

"You won't lose them for a while yet. Time is a strange thing, Kagome." He murmured as her mother returned from the shed, brushing dirt from her hands. "It can go quickly or slowly. We will endeavor to ensure this time goes slowly. I promise you."

They had gathered, finally, in their old home, Sesshomaru's palace. Long before, he had given the property to the government to make it into a museum. However, as provided in the provisions of the deed, whenever his family wished to occupy the grounds, all visitors would be turned away for the duration of that day. The gathering had only begun a few hours before. Over two hundred descendants of Sesshomaru and Kagome's children arrived. Most still worked for Sesshomaru in one capacity or another. If not, they were connected to the family through money or other organizations who did philanthropic works that Kagome managed.

Sesshomaru looked out over his gardens. Still, after half a century, they were his even though he knew he had given them up. They were so different than he remembered, however the small cemetery had been maintained and protected. Akira's descendants had ensured that the property was maintained in such a way that was respectful to the dead located on the grounds. They also ensured that Inuyasha's sword as well as Sesshomaru's, which he had buried with Akira's ashes in honor of his son who had given his life in the protection of his sisters and family.

It had been one night when soldiers had descended on a group of his siblings had been visiting nearby towns to help with the infirmed who had fallen to an illness brought by European invaders. They had gone on Kagome's orders and Akira had accompanied them to ensure the girl's safety. The sound of gunfire had sent Sesshomaru into action and he had descended upon the town, slaughtering the soldiers with his acid whip. He had resurrected his son with barely enough time to salvage his soul. Akira had lived a full half century longer. When he had died, Sesshomaru had only felt it right that his sword be buried with his mortal son. Akira had been the best warrior of all Sesshomaru had trained and had possessed the greatest valor of all his sons. It was a sign of his mourning and love and he had never regretted it.

"Sesshomaru?" He looked to find Kagome's teenage brother, Souta, standing nearby. Kagome was with her mother and their daughter and grandchild, cooing over the little one.

"Yes, Souta?" He replied softly. The boy amused him and often provided him someone to talk to of late. He reminded him of a younger Akira. When his son had just begun to learn himself.

"You love Kagome, right?"

It was such a simple question, but it struck him for some reason. "With all I am, Souta. I would be nothing and entirely lost without her."

Souta smiled faintly and looked out toward the cemetery. "You know, the whole time I knew Inuyasha, he never said that when I asked him. He'd never admit it. Maybe he never really did. Don't know."

"He loved her." Sesshomaru affirmed with a touch of sorrow in his voice. "However, his heart was possessed by another who did not deserve it in the slightest."

"How do you figure? On both, I mean."

"The heart of an inuyoukai, even when their blood is mixed with humanity, is a devoted and entirely passionate thing. Though Inuyasha loved your sister, his first love was always his first devotion. He could not ever give himself entirely to her and I am lucky for that fact."

"But how do you know he loved her?"

Sesshomaru smiled faintly as his mind fell back on that night. The night before they had pitted themselves against Naraku. The night that he had been asked two favors by his brother, both of which he had ensured were kept.

"I need you to do something for me, Sesshomaru. I know you hate me, but I don't think this will be all that much of a problem for you to do."

He looked to Inuyasha, removing his gaze from the sleeping miko who was curled next to the fire. "Speak."

Inuyasha smirked. "I'm probably gonna die tomorrow. If I'm close… If there's no chance I'll live or even if there is, you gotta promise me you won't let Kagome save me and you won't try."

"Are you certain?"

"Yes. I'm tired, Sesshomaru. I'm aching and I just want peace. I'll never have that when every day I look at her and I see Kikyo… Especially when I know that her heart won't ever be mine."

"Is that all you wish to ask of me?"

"No."

"This is becoming a very long list of requests considering I care very little for you, Inuyasha. In fact, I would gladly end you before Naraku if I did not need you to help end him."

"Just shut up and listen for once." He sighed and ran his fingers through his hair. He too looked toward Kagome where she rested. "I know you love her. She loves you too; she just doesn't know it yet. I want her to be happy. I want her to have what I couldn't ever give her. I know you can do that. I just want to know that you will. Promise me you'll take care of her and protect her and make her happy. I won't find peace if I don't know that she'll be alright."

He had agreed to his brother's wish and had never looked back. It was why he knew that Inuyasha had loved her. He had let her go so she could be happy. "There are times in a man's life that the measure of their worth is learned in degrees and others that is proven entirely with only a few words and actions. Inuyasha gave me his blessing to love your sister and care for her and protect her forever. Until then, he had been entirely selfish concerning her. It was at that moment I knew that he loved her completely because her happiness was more important than anything else."

"I knew he was a good man." Souta murmured and caused Sesshomaru to smile again.

"He was a good man. I only wish he knew that I thought so."

"I'm sure he does, Love." Kagome's voice touched his ears and he turned, smiling down at her. Souta chuckled and walked back to where his mother sat with his niece. Satori was sitting nearby now with the new infant cradled in her arms. "When were you going to tell me that?"

Sesshomaru shrugged and pulled his beloved into his embrace tightly, kissing the crown of her head. "Now."

"What else haven't you told me?" She asked, looking up at him with pure, divine blue eyes. He always felt close to heaven when he let himself drown in her gaze.

He leaned and kissed her deeply and passionately, warming at the sound of her sigh as it reached his ears. "That I love you and will never leave your side."

"But I already knew that." She breathed, meeting his eyes again. "I've never doubted it." 

He caressed her cheek and smiled, sudden bliss overwhelming everything else. "But the words have power. They make the sentiment real. So I say them."

She blushed and embraced him again, closing her eyes. Time would go on. They would still lose whom they loved and more who they would love would slip into place. But they would never forget. Could never forget. Everything was necessary to be whole.


End file.
